Karma

By Joe Rector

In the late morning, I arrived at the dermatologist’s office for my yearly full-body exam. I warned Danielle, the person I always see, that she might want to eat lunch before getting an eyeful of my old body. She laughed and replied that she could tough it out. Then she proceeded to freeze places on my forehead, neck, shoulders and chest. For good measure, she took a sample of another spot on my back. I’m flabbergasted that things I did in my younger days are paying me back now.

According to Danielle, youthful sunburns caused by not using sunblock are the main culprits for my need of these treatments.We had that kind of stuff for vacations, but during the rest of the spring and summer, we had nothing. Two chubby little boys ran around the yard shirtless. Sunburns were severe; we whined to Mother, and she fanned us in an effort to help. Eventually, that sunburn soaked into our skin and left freckles, a bit darker complexion and peeling skin.

We did other dumb things in that past life that affected our present-day conditions. Mother was a fabulous cook, and we boys were unequaled eaters. We didn’t miss many meals; the heaping piles of food disappeared, and we washed it down with two tall glasses of milk. Crisco was the culprit. Foods bathed in the stuff, and that grease made everything taste better. Plenty of red meat was included in our weekly diet, whether it was served as a roast, a hamburger or a meatloaf.

We didn’t have poor eating habits back then. Moms cooked meals the way they’d learned to do. High blood pressure and cholesterol weren’t often considered major problems. However, now, many of us are swallowing pills every day to combat those problems. Our diets no longer include fried foods, except for an occasional trip to restaurants or burger joints. Too many of us in this country are overweight, but we fail miserably to do anything about it. Heart disease and strokes are lurking around the corner and waiting for us.

Some of us tempted fate and participated in activities that were bound to cause injuries. Because I suffered with excruciating headaches in football, I had to become a manager for the team instead. That sounded like a good way to stay with the team without suffering any injury. However, I managed to break an ankle as I carried dry footballs to officials during a rainy football game. To make matters worse, I had no ride and walked the roads back to the house.

Over the next few years, I further damaged the ankle. In all, I’ve had six casts and two surgeries. Now, my ankle is flimsy. It offers no support and turns if I step on a stick or gravel. My assertion is that all of the neck, back and leg problems I’ve endured over this life began on that rainy night in 1968.

I began smoking at a young age and puffed away on stolen cigarettes from my parents’ packs. Daddy caught and whipped us, and that’s when I gave them up. When I was a freshman in high school, I picked up the habit for real. I fogged family, friends and dates with cigarettes. I was a slow learner, so not until Daddy, Mother and my brother Dallas died from cancer did I put the smokes down for good.

These days, my breathing could be better. I’m sure my lungs are scarred from the smoke and toxins from those “cancer sticks.” Smoking kept me from having enough wind to run a single mile until I was in my 40s. The years of smoking aren’t my best ones. I wasted money and health on a habit that controlled my life. Finally, I kicked the smoking habit in my early 50s.  A prayer that cancer won’t make a visit is often offered.   I’ve seen the brutal effects of the disease.

This piece might make others think I’m complaining. That’s not my intent. I just am shocked that so many acts from my youth have come back to bite me in the butt. It’s true what folks say about Karma.